Coal : State of
Maharasahtra is endowed with large deposits of coal. The resources of coal in
the State occurs in Nagpur, Chandrapur, Yavatmal and Wardha districts so far
5576 million tones of coal reserves are proved in the State.

Manganese Ore : The
manganese ore deposits occurring in Central India are supposed to be the most
promising deposits in the Country. The chief ore deposits in Maharashtra occur
as an arcuate belt passes through Kandri-Mansar area of Nagpur district, which
forms the middle portion of the belt- Dongri Budruk and Sitasaongi in Bhandara
district. Maharashtra is one of the leading Manganese ore producing State in
India. Almost all Manganese ore production of the State comes from Nagpur and
Bhandara. At present, the manganese ore in this area is mined by the public
sector undertaking, namely the Manganese Ore India Limited and by several other
small private mine owners. Besides, small occurrences of low grade manganese
ore are found in Sindhudurg district. The total reserves of manganese ore in
the State are estimated at 20.85 million tonnes . The manganese ore mined in
the State, is mostly utilized in the manufacture of ferromanganese,
silicomanganese and iron and steel industries and to a small extent in
production of battery cells.

Iron ore :
Important iron ore occurrences in the State are confined to the districts of
Gadchiroli, Chandrapur, Gondia and Sindhudurg. Out of the total estimated
reserves of 260.824 million tonnes of iron ore, the Gadchiroli district alone
accounts for 178 million tonnes, the rest 75.38 million tonnes being from areas
of Sindhudurg & 2.18 millin tonnes Chandrapur districts. The iron ore
deposits around Surjagarth in Etapalli tahsil of Gadchiroli district is the
biggest deposit in the State.

Limestone :
Extensive deposits of limestone occur in Yavatmal and Chandrapur districts of
the State. Limestone is used for manufacturing cement, as flux in iron and
steel industry and in the industries like paper, sugar, textile etc. The
estimated reserves of limestone in the State are 1371.425 million tonnes. The
limestone deposits are mostly located in Chandrapur, Yavatmal and Gadchiroli
districts. Minor deposits are located in Nagpur district in the form of
calcitic and dolomitic marbles in the Sausar Group of formations. The cement
grade limestone is mostly confined to Rajur, Mukutban, Sindola-Paramodoh,
Gowari-Pathri, Velabai-Kurai areas in Yavatmal district, Awarpur-Bakardi,
Nokari-Kusumbi, Chandur-Thutra, Gojoli Somanpalli , Chedwai-Bari, Nandgaon-Ekodi,
Lakhmapur-Pimpalgaon etc. areas in Chandrapur district and Devalmari-Kate palli
area in Gadchiroli district.

Dolomite :
Extensive deposits of dolomite occur in the districts of Chandrapur, Yavatmal
and Nagpur in the State. Some of the dolomite produced in the State is at
present utilized as flux in the iron and steel industry, as dust in the coal
mines and for manufacture of mosaic tiles, etc.

Kyanite and Sillimanite :
The mineral kyanite & sillimanite occurs in Bhandara district of the
State. It is used for manufacture of high grade refractory required for
various metallurgical industries, cement manufacture, glass manufacture etc.,
where generation of high temperature is involved in the process. The estimated
reserves of kyanite and sillimanite of all grades in the State are of the order
of 2.61 million tonnes. The important occurrences are near villages of Pohra,
Dahegaon, Pimpalgaon, Dudhala, Pardi, Jamgaon, Nawargaon etc. in Bhandara
district.

Bauxite : Bauxite is
the chief ore of aluminium. It occurs as cappings on the hills in Kolhapur,
Ratnagiri, Raigad Satara and Thane districts. The total reserves of Bauxite in
the State are estimated at 112.951 million tonnes. Bauxite produced in the
State, is utilised for manufacture of aluminium by the HINDALCO & other
private enterprenurs in the state.

Silica Sand : The
silica sand deposits in the State are mostly confined to Sindhudurg, Ratnagiri
and Kolhapur districts. The total estimated reserves of silica sand in the
State are of the order of 58 million tonnes. The silica sand produced in the
State is mostly utilised for foundry industry in the State. Small quantity is
also utilised for glass manufacture.

Copper ore : Copper
has undoubtedly the widest application of all the non-ferrous metals. Its
physical properties provide a combination of a number of extremely useful
characters which have provided it with the high position it holds amongst the
base metals. Copper ore occurrences have been observed at Thanewasna,
Dubarpeth in Chandrapur district, Pular-Parsodi, Ranbori-Kolar-Tambekhani,
Ranmangli, Kitari, Thutanbori, etc. in Nagpur district. Geological Survey of
India has carried out the exploration work in the Thanewasna and Thutanbori
areas of Chandrapur and Nagpur districts respectively and GSI has indicated
total reserves of Copper ore to be of the order of 7.70 million tonnes with
copper content ranging from 0.81 to 2.73%.

Gold : Gold is the
basic metal of currency and coinage and so having a important high position in
the metal group of minerals. The investigation for gold has been carried out
in the State by Geological Survey of India . Detailed investigation carried
out by GSI in the Parsori ( west block) of Nagpur district has indicated good
potential which is subject to further detailed exploration.

Tungsten ore :
Tungsten is a strategic mineral which is widely used in electrical and
electronic industries. It has wide application in space technology, steel
industry, etc. The tungsten ore occurs in Kuhi, Khobna, Agragaon, Ranbori,
Kolari-Bhaori areas of Nagpur district. The reserves estimated for tungsten in
the State is about 19.98 million tones. Geological Survey of India and Mineral
Exploration Corp. Ltd. have carried out vigorous exploration work for tungsten
in the above said localities.

Zinc Ore : Zinc is
used in the various types of alloys, in manufacture of dry batteries, in textile
industry, rubber industries, chemical and metallurgical industries etc. Zinc
ore occurs in few localities of the State mostly in Nagpur district i.e. Anjani,
Tambekhani, Kolari-Bhaori areas. The total reserves indicated by GSI in Nagpur
district are abo;ut 8.27 million tonns with 5.4% Zn.

Chromite : Chromite is
mostly used in metallurgical, refractory and chemical industries. Small
deposits of chromite are known to occur in Nagpur, Bhandara, Sindhudurg and
Chandrapur districts of the State. The deposits of chromite in Sindhudurg
district are located near Kankavali and Wagda and in Bhandara, Nagpur and
Chandrapur districts, near the villages of Pauni, Taka, Dhamangaon and Ballarpur
respectively. The State Department has proved 0.661 million tonnes of Chromite
in the State.

Baryte : Mineral
baryte is known to occur in Phutana, Dewada etc., areas in Chandrapur
district. However, total reserves from various localities are estimated at
only 0.136 million tonnes. Baryte is mostly used in oil-well drilling and
paint industry.

Agate stones :
Occurrences of agate stones are known in Aurangabad, Jalgaon, Buldhana and
Ahmadnagar districts in the State. These stones are utilised for manufacture
of fancy items like paperweights, ashtrays, pendants, necklace, buttons, etc.
after slabbing, cutting, grinding, polishing and lapping.

Minerals like clays, felspar, ochre, etc. occur in small
quantities at several localities in the State.

Decorative Building Stones :
The Building stones suitable for decorative purposes have been discovered in
Nagpur, Chandrapur, Gadchiroli, Bhandara, Nanded, Sindhudurg and Thane districts
of the State. These include Granites, Gabbros, Syenites, Dolerite, Basalts,
Sandstones etc. About 260 million cubic meteres of various decorative stones
have been indicated so far by the State Geology and Mining Department.

In addition, the State has vast resources of minor minerals
in the form of building material like stones, murrum, sand etc.